Wednesday, 26 February 2014

Things have been very busy around the Sadal house lately. Lots of exciting stuff happening but mainly because its birthday season! Raed had his first five weeks ago and last Friday it was Naels fifth. After weeks of preparations and celebrations, it feels like I'm living in a world of birthday parties.

Obviously, this is the best time of year because it means lots and lots of good food, delicious cakes and lotssss of shopping. And trust me, I am good at all these ;) Jokes apart, I think throwing your child's party is just as much fun for the mommy as it is for the kids. Especially, if the mommy is a celebration-enthusiast like myself....

Since Nael is obsessed with Disney’s Cars and Planes, and every time I asked him what cake he wanted me to make for his birthday he always
screamed, "PLANES!", we had to throw him a Planes party, of course. Needless to say, his father, a hobby pilot himself, was even more delighted to monitor the planning and all.

To match the theme, we (Mr. Schee mainly, I was JUST the brain behind the idea ;) made passport and boarding pass invitations featuring the party details and individual mugshots of each little guest. The idea was a huuuuuggggeee hit with all the kids and their parents and we got so many compliments!

I also got Nael involved by helping me make the decorations out of toilet paper rolls and construction paper. We both had a blast doing it!

Add caption

The table cloth was fairly easy to make and turned out pretty cute. I used various aeronautical charts and recreated a map showing different zones, routes and the names of our little pilots.

Add caption

The party favours were my favourite! I filled cardboard boxes with a variety of planes-themed-items and formed these into pilot cases using blue and orange gift paper and glue.

Just in case you want to know, whats inside these pilot cases, check this post.

Mini Oreo cookies as propellers.

The sandwich cutter arrived a day before the big day, just in time to add extra sparkle to the table.

The cake was admired and devoured by almost all the guests. It was truly delicious!

Most people had several pieces and all the kids had their sugar levels fully restored. For more images click here.

My birthday boy loved his party. You shouldve seen his sparkling eyes when we asked him to cut the cake. And that smile on his face---just priceless!

Oh Naeni, Mama loves you soooooooooo much and so does your Baba. Youre the best thing that has ever happened to us and we are so very proud of the handsome, articulate, energetic, intelligent and gentle young man you are becoming. I hope that one day when you sit down to read this blog, you can say you are proud of your parents, too :)

Considering the fact that I'm not a professional cake maker and with having to plan the entire party, there’s not much time for
being creative with the cakes. So, please cut out some slack while judging the following images. I am just a regular mother determined to give my little boys the special cake they want each year.

This ones from last week - from the 5th birthday party of my Nael. The Disney´s Planes-lover wanted me to make him a Dusty Crophopper cake. And I knew I wanted it to be 3 D. After viewing dozens of cakes online for inspiration and having rejected all of them, I turned to my husband for help and as they say, fathers know the best. He knew it without even really having to think about it.

An aircraft carrier cake with Dusty Crophopper ready to take off.

Everything except the birthday candle was edible.

And here is what he took to his Kindergarten the next morning. Yes, yes, this was to compensate for the disaster I had made on his third birthday ;)

There’s no point writing a long blog about this. Just wanted to share what was inside the "Pilot Cases" - the party favors kids were able to take home after the Disney Planes themed birthday party of my five year old Nael.

I bought chocolate bars, lolly pops, surprise eggs, chewing gums, gummi bears, pretzel and other snacks. Some items were used just as they come, whereas others were re-invented for use in a totally new way. You know my love for DIY projects ;)

The Kinder Schokolade bars were packed as runways.

Another great idea I came across on pinterest was of
Push Pop airplanes. But since I couldnt find any round pops here, I took two Yogurette chocolate bars, wrapped them in blue paper. For the wheels, the only option I had on hand was chocolate flavoured ring cereals. They worked perfect!

Add caption

Luckily I found surprise eggs with toy planes inside. Ive yet to meet a kid who doesnt like surprise eggs, so that too was a hit!

Some savoury snacks, a packet of gummi bears, lollies - all landed in small cardboard boxes.

Wrapped in blue gift paper and decorated with orange buckles, the pilot cases were ready to be taken home.

For other decoration ideas and party details, check out the main post here !

Wednesday, 5 February 2014

Last Saturday, we celebrated our younger ones first birthday. It's just crazy how quickly the time has passed by and I´m still having trouble believing that he is already one. Can someone please tell me where has the year gone?

I always make a big deal about celebrating my kids birthdays. And why shouldnt I? For someone like me who loves socializing with others, making crafts and spending hours cooking in the kitchen, these are the opportunities to do something special for my little ones as well. I know they wont even remember a thing about it but at least theyll have enough pictures to cherish some day.

Picking the theme was no brainer this time! Raed not only looks like a teddy bear, he also behaves like a teddy. His curly fuzzy hair, soft chubby cheeks just make you feel like cuddling up to him and stroking the soft plush fur on his head. So, once the theme was selected, the real magic began.

Here are the handmade invitations I mailed out about three weeks in advance.

Ive erased my telephone number for privacy purposes (as if some one would care).

On the party day, Nael´s big teddy received the guests at the entrance holding blue and brown (the official party colours) balloons.

The signage was required to direct the teddies to the right room.

The old Ikea frames got a makeover with brown crepe paper and a blue ribbon bow.

A pack of blue and brown printing paper was enough to make these super easy, yet very fancy decorative fans.

The letters were made out of cardboard and crepe paper. The brown "wallpaper" as table runners was perfect to match the theme. The same wallpaper was used to make the party banner with Readi´s pictures on it.

The garland was draped across the front of the table showing how my son
has grown from birth to twelve months (Trust me, it went too fast!).

I also added Raedi´s food jars dolled up with some blue ribbon and filled with biryani rice (it was lunch time) to the table and jazzed up the lids with brown teddy faces made from construction paper.

The party games; feeding the bear and the hanging donuts were definitely among the most funniest things we did that day.

Each winner received a jar of honey with pine nuts.

We also had a photo booth to create a lasting memory of Raedi´s big day. I made / arranged different props and materials to create the drama effect ;) Wish I could post the wonderful shots that we were able to take of our lovely guests but since I havent taken their permission, dont want anyone to sue me afterwards ;)

Each teddy bear went home with a basket of party favors inclusing home-made honey almond butter, a box of candies, biscuits and chocolate bars.

Celebrations dont necessarily have to be expensive as
you can always find ways to save money and still make it just as you
envision. Im glad we were able to celebrate our cubs first birthday in such a wonderful way.